Is pot good for sex? A lot of people believe it is. Many men say that it
increases their endurance , and many women rapturously report that it
increases their enjoyment. But watch out. Long-term puffing, a new
report concludes, can interfere with the production of reproductive
hormones, suppressing the supply of the male sex hormone testosterone
enough to produce impotence or infertility.Earlier studies linking marijuana use to lowered sexual prowess have been
largely discounted because they lacked proper controls. But the new
study by researchers at the Reproductive Biology Research Foundation of St. Louis
and the University of California at Los Angeles will be harder to dismiss because it was
so carefully conducted. The researchers found 20 men who volunteered for the study
and confined them to the metabolic research ward of U.C.L.A.'s
Neuropsychiatric Institute. There they were forbidden to smoke
cigarettes or drink coffee or alcohol, and given no marijuana for
eleven days before their testosterone levels were measured. Only then
were they allowed to smoke pot. Each man was given a daily average of
five marijuana cigarettes containing a known quantity of pot's active
ingredient and monitored closely throughout the three-month test.Dramatic Drop. After four weeks, the researchers noted significant drops
in the men's production of luteinizing hormone, one of the substances
that cause the testes to produce testosterone. After the fifth week,
the researchers recorded decreases in the men's testosterone levels. By
the end of the eighth week, manufacture of follicle-stimulating
hormone, which is also involved in sperm production, was down
dramatically too. Within nine weeks, the men's testosterone levels had
decreased by an average of one-third—and in some cases to within the
range where impotence and infertility could occur.Dr. Robert Kolodny of the St. Louis group expressed doubt that casual
marijuana use would have any serious effect on a man's sexual
performance. But citing the study and more personalized interviews with
500 steady marijuana users who experienced sexual problems, he warned
that those who smoke too much pot may find more than their inhibitions
lowered when they get into bed. Their problem, however, need not be
permanent. The study also showed that every subject's testosterone
level—and ability to perform sexually—returned to normal two weeks
after giving up the weed.
